A story in the Grains of Time Saga. For an introduction to this saga, I recommend reading my mini-guide
Acknowledgements: The texts used here are from original sources from the Viking age, and the real authors of them are unknown. But if their names are unknown, their work is not. Some things do live on…
Disclaimer: I don't claim ownership of any of these characters, really, and I'm certainly not making any money of them!
Author's Note at the end. * and a number refer to the number in author's note.
Summary: Amanda and Erik disappear to face a challenger that will prove deadly for one of them. Meanwhile, Rachel makes a startling discovery Ta Jules!! Your input is always appriciated!
By Camilla Sandman
~~~~~
Hugin then goes forth,
explores the heavens,
the powers fear
disaster from delay.
'Twas Thrain's belief
that the dream was ominous;
Dain's thought that
the dream was dark.
(*1)(Odin's Ravens' song)
~~~~~
She walked in a barren landscape; no trees or vegetation could be seen. The sky and ground was dark, as if burned. Reaching down, she touched the ground and it felt warm still under her fingers. As she looked up again, she saw flames against the sky. Great flames, the size of houses. The heat rolled over her, and she felt sweat drip from her face and onto the ground. Steam arose as it hit the ground. Her lunges burned with each breath, the air was so hot it felt like swallowing small flames.
As she looked up, she saw two black birds fly over the sky. Ravens. One let out a sad cry as it passed above her. It sounded almost human and made her shiver despite the heat. She trailed the ravens with her eyes as they flew against the flames and circled over.
Far, far away she heard the howls of a wolf. Turning around, she saw Nick stand beside her. He stood quietly, looking at the flames too, his eyes as dark as the sky. His hands were bloody, and she stared at them in horror.
“This is how the world ends,” he said quietly, and pointed to the horizon where the flames still raged high. And in the flames she suddenly saw a great tree, the greatest tree she had ever seen. But the flames were eating it, and as she stood there, ashes began to fall like snowflakes around them. Holding out a hand, it was immediately filled with small pieces of ash. A feeling of urgency came over her, as she watched the tree burn to the ground. There was something she was supposed to do. Looking over at Nick, she saw blood begin to pour from his neck.
And the ravens cried, and the wolf howled and she screamed.
Barely withholding a scream, Amanda woke up. Panting, she looked around, and realised she was in her own bed. The only sound in the room was Nick's light breathing. The window had blown open, and a warm wind stirred the curtains slightly. Soft moonlight lit up the room, and it all felt very peaceful.
As she snuggled close to Nick again and he put an arm around her before dozing off again, she forgot the dream. It was only that, after all. Just a dream.
The next night, it came back.
******
The woman currently by the name of Raven glanced over the landscape with a frown on her forehead. She pushed a strand of red hair from her face, tucking it behind her ear. Her hair hadn't always been red. Quite recently it had been long and black, and she had used another name.
She'd had many names over the centuries, but she always seemed to return to Raven. It was the name Erik had called her by the first time he'd seen her. She didn't like to think of herself as sentimental, but.. She missed Erik. Holding onto the name he'd given her was a way of holding onto him.
Her body tensed as she felt the approach of another Immortal. Her challenger no doubt, a silly little girl who had was so busy killing she forgot to live. Raven had met many like her over the years, but it never ceased to amaze her. Such a waste. Still, she was too old not to take the challenge seriously. Many old Immortals had made that mistake, and it had cost them their heads.
“You can still walk away,” Raven warned the girl as she walked up, her sword raised high and ready.
“There can only be one,” came the cold reply.
“Oh please. Let's not pretend this is about the Game. Loke sent you to play his own little game.” Raven shook her head. “So let us fight, and stop pretending.”
Swords flashed through the air, and steel met steel. For a few minutes only swords clashing could be heard as the two battled on the hilltop. The sky had turned dark, the dawning sun hid behind a stack of clouds coming from nowhere. And suddenly, lightning struck.
As the Quickening stopped, Raven picked up her sword and began to walk away. The girl had been to young to be a threat, but she was always glad to walk from a challenge alive. Sighing, she threw a look at the landscape around her. She loved this country in the spring, but she could not stay home this summer. Too much was at risk.
(*2)“À màtt sìn ok megin,” she muttered. Her belief in her own strength had saved her many times before. It would serve her now too. Walking down the hill, she began wondering where she would find Erik.
******
Nick focused on his sword, seeing it and not seeing it at the same time. His body was tensed, ready. Behind him Erik waited, waited and waited. And finally, he lifted his sword and swung it around.
Nick met it with his own so fast spark almost flew.
“Good,” Erik said flatly. “Again.”
They repeated the exercise again and again, until Nick's arms felt heavy with the strain. Erik showed no signs of being tired, his face a mask of concentration. Finally, when Nick thought he would drop over, Erik lowered his sword.
“Focus,” Erik said while putting his sword away. “Never ever lose focus. Hate, anger, jealousy, all these emotions can drive you, but if you lose focus, you will lose your head.”
Nick nodded, putting his sword into its sheat and wiping sweat from his face. There wasn't a part of his body that didn't hurt. Still, he felt fitter than ever and he was making progress. Erik wasn't completely humiliating him anymore.
Another Presence entered his mind, and Nick looked up to see Rachel stand in the doorway. She'd let her hair grow the last month, and kept it in a loose braid. Her skin had begun to tan in the warm spring sun, and she looked better than he'd ever seen her. Some of the haunting look had vanished from her, and he was glad for that. He gave her a quick smile, before walking over.
“Hey.”
“Hey,” she replied, “Frank wants to know if you're free for beers tonight.”
“Sure.” He threw a look over at Erik. “Want to join us?”
Erik let out a great laugh. “I could drink before your great grand-grand-grand-grand-grandfather was born. I will be honoured to drink with you both, but I will drink you under the table.”
Rachel smiled. Ever since Frank had got back from the hospital, she'd stayed by his side. But he was slowly going nuts while recuperating from the gunshot he'd suffered last month. He could still barely walk, but he was alive, and that was all that mattered. And David was beginning to settle in, getting new friends at the American school. He still awoke sobbing in the night sometimes, but it was becoming more rare.
“See you later guys,” she smiled and headed back to the car. Right-sided driving was still strange to her, so she drove slowly through the afternoon rush from Erik's apartment to the American school to pick up David and then she would head home to her and Frank's house.
Her and Frank's house. To her surprise, she didn't feel uncomfortable with it. They had almost been living together for a year on Footloose anyway, and David and Frank got along nicely. She'd had time to digest everything that had happened, and miss Jack without being choked by his memory. Nick had taken her along on a few missions for Myers, and it gave her a sense of normality on her life. Even if her life was nothing like normal. The sword lessons she had with Amanda every day were evidence of that.
Driving over to the American school, she sat in the car a few minutes and waited before David came running out. He smiled broadly as he saw her, waving widely as well. It was so good to have him back in her life permanently. He wasn't just a ray of sunshine, he was the whole sun.
And life with him was so very, very precious.
******
The computer beeped. Erik gave it an annoyed look as he slowly released his muscles and dropped the sword. Bloody 21st century and its equipment. Never a moment's peace.
Walking over to his computer he stared at the blinking message on the screen telling him he had new e-mail. With a few keystrokes he brought up the picture and froze completely.
The image was blurred and the quality was less than perfect, but it was a woman with dark, flowing hair, beheaded. The caption simply read “You next.”
It could not be Raven. Erik shook his head without realising it. She was far too old to die. Her death was unacceptable. No.. She had invited him up for the summer, and he had considered settling down for a decade or two.
Very, very slowly he pressed the “print” button and slumped down on the chair. His feet didn't seem to carry him anymore. He sat there in silence, watching the printer even after it had completed its task.
Finally he reached over and picked it up. He had to know. If it was her, he could only think of one capable and angry enough to take her head. Loke. He must have returned to Norway, and, and.. Erik took a long, calm breath. Anger would not help him now.
Loke was a formidable opponent. He would need help to take him down. And there was only one Erik could think of.
Amanda.
The man who stands at a strange threshold,
Should be cautious before he cross it,
Glance this way and that:
Who knows beforehand what foes may sit
Awaiting him in the hall?
(*3)(Håvamål)
~~~~~
Nick awoke to a horrible, horrible headache. His head seemed to ring intensely, as if someone had left an alarm bell on in there. Groaning, he pushed his head into the pillow and waited for the ringing to lessen.
Sunlight was streaming into the room, and he realised it was probably more like noon than morning. He'd been really putting it away last night, so had Frank. By the end of the night, they had been falling over. He'd barely managed to stumble into the bedroom.
Opening his eyes, he looked around. No Amanda. As the memories slowly began drifting back, he realised she hadn't been there when he'd stumbled back to bed. Maybe she had decided to sleep elsewhere, but a small nagging worry began to spread through his clouded mind.
She and Erik had vanished early into the evening, and hadn't returned. They could have been just reminiscing about the past or something, he reasoned, but the nagging feeling didn't go away.
He took a deep breath, and pushed himself up. The world spun slightly before stabilising. Standing up, he felt better, but the room was much too bright.
He took a long, cold shower and it cleared his mind considerably. And the headache went away faster than he expected. Some parts of Immortal healing weren't too bad, he decided. As he pulled on some new clothes, he felt the buzz warning him an Immortal was near.
It was Rachel, looking way too fresh and cheerful as she walked into the bar. She handed him a cup of coffee without comment, and waited till he'd finished it before speaking.
“Long night?”
“Yeah..” he trailed off, looking around. “What time is it?”
“Around two. I was looking for Amanda.”
“I don't know where she is,” he replied, trying not to sound worried. Amanda came and went as she liked, it wasn't like he was her babysitter or anything… But it sure would have felt good to know where she was.
In the house next door, Frank managed to limp to answer the insistent doorbell. It sounded ten times worse now then he could remember, almost like a siren more than a quiet ring. Damn hangover.
“Yes?” he asked as he opened the door and looked straight at a red-haired woman. It was hard to tell her age, it could be twenty, and it could be thirty. She was dressed relaxed, and rather warmly for the season he thought.
“Hello,” she smiled, “Is Amanda in?”
“She lives next door,” he countered, trying not to groan at the sound her voice was making in his head.
“Right, but I thought she might be training with Rachel.”“Who are you?” Alarm bells went off in his head, and he suddenly felt very sober. Her long coat could very well hide a sword.
“You may call me Raven,” she smiled, getting a look of distance on her face, as if she remembered something a long time ago. “You must be Frank, Rachel's.. Significant other. I have heard of you two.”
“How?” Frank felt a stab of worry. He had a sneaking feeling she was Immortal, and that usually meant one thing.
“Word gets around.” Raven paused, looking beyond him and into the hall where David stood. His eyes were locked on Raven, but without any hostility.
“Hello David,” she smiled, holding out a hand. “I am Raven.”
And to Frank's surprise, David walked over and took her hand. He didn't seem distrustful at all, more curious than anything really, Frank noted.
“I am really looking for Erik, and I thought Amanda might know where he was,” Raven explained when she saw Frank's rather worried glance. She could imagine what he was thinking.
“The big man?” David shot in, making her laugh softly.
“Yes, the big man.”
“He and Amanda went away.”
Why both adults froze like they'd seen a ghost, David didn't know, but he had the strangest feeling he had said something wrong.
*******
Nick wanted to go back to bed. Maybe if he slept a long, long while he'd wake up to find Amanda comfortably asleep in their bed, and all his troubles gone.
“You're sure?” he asked Raven, the newly arrived Immortal who paced the floor next to him. She appeared calm, but beneath it he could sense a deep worry and concern. She seemed to know all about them, which worried him. He knew nothing about her, and Presence had told him she was old. Very old. Just how old, he didn't dare guess.
“No,” she sighed, “But it makes sense. If Erik thinks I'm dead, and he went after Loke, he would bring Amanda.”
“Why exactly?” Rachel asked, pushing away a stand of hair. It figured that something would come along to break the peace and quiet.
“Because Amanda feels she owes me something,” Raven ignored the questioning stars and plunged on. “She might also have feared that Loke would, once he had dealt with Erik, come after you, Nick. You are Erik's student.” She shook her head.
“Damnit, I should have known. I'm too old to fall for that trick. Loke sent an opponent after me who looked like I did when Erik and I last met. I win, but Loke manages to convince Erik otherwise. Probably with pictures. Voila, he forces both Erik and me to confront him. If I had only known Erik was no longer in London..” She trailed off once again.
“Why didn't she tell me?” Nick sighed.
“She was afraid you would follow.”
“Damn right I would.”
“How old is Loke?” Frank asked, for the first time butting into the conversation. He almost felt like he was intruding just being there, as he was the only mortal in the room. David had gone to watch some French cartoon, after having explained how he'd woken up and seen Amanda and Erik take off into the night. They hadn't told him where they were going, only that they were.
“There's only one male Immortal older than him,” Raven stated, something almost like fear creeping into her voice. “Even I am not sure just how old he is, but three or four thousand years old is my best guess. Closer to four than three thousand, I think.”
Stunned silence filled the room. Frank tried to wrap his head around the concept, but failed miserably. He felt old at fifty, how would bloody four thousand years feel like? Ancient, to say the least.
“And how old are you?” Nick finally asked.
“Oh, old enough,” she answered cryptically. “It doesn't matter. Loke wants me, so I will have to go.”
Nick looked ready to protest, but she cut him off before he could open his mouth “Save your breath, Nick, you can come too. I will not force you, but if you choose to of your own free will, who am I to stop you?”
“You know I'll come.”
“Yes.” She nodded. “Is there a ladies room here?”
“Upstairs,” Rachel pointed, “First room on your left.”
“Thanks.” Heading for the stairs, she saw Nick put his head in his hands. She knew how he was feeling, she was feeling the same. Not for the first time either. Erik could be a fool-hearted, aggressive and honour-bound man, and there had been many times she thought he'd been dead. And every time it hurt just as much. In a strange way, she was glad for that.
“Hey,” she greeted David with, walking into the room where he was sitting. He wasn't looking at the television set, rather at the window.
“Did I say something wrong?” His voice sounded small to her ears.
“No, no,” she assured him, “We just need to have an adult chat.”
He nodded slowly, but didn't look too convinced. “Is Amanda leaving like my dad did?” The pained expression on his face spoke volumes.
“Not if I can help it,” she answered honestly. “But David, you know..”
“I know about angels,” he cut in impatiently. She smiled slightly.
“I guess you could call it that. There are good angels and bad angels, and some angels who can't decide if they're good or bad.”
“Mum's a good angel.” David's voice had a hint of “don't-you-dare-argue.” However shielded Rachel tried to keep him, Raven had a good idea he knew much more than he let on. Wisdom didn't always have something to do with age.
“Yes. Now Amanda and Erik – the big guy – left to deal with a bad angel. And Nick and me have to go too. So I need you to protect your mum and Frank.” She reached beneath her shirt and pulled out a chain, holding it out. On it dangled a twisted piece of wood, black wood. David regarded it with curiosity, reaching out to touch it. The wood felt hot still under his fingers.
“I want you to hold onto this, but you have to keep it a secret, okay?”
He nodded eagerly, grasping the wood with his fingers. It wasn't uncomfortably warm, and tingled when he held it.
“If you are in danger, I will know. And if I don't come back, you keep it,” she continued, feeling more certain it was the right decision as she spoke.
“Is it magic?” David whispered, feeling slightly in awe. He knew it had to be, just like angels were magic.
“Yeah. It comes from a very, very old tree.” She lowered her own voice conspiratorially. That much she could tell him, she doubted he had ever heard of Yggdrasil, the tree of life. He was from another part of the world altogether. And even those who knew the legend thought it to be just that; a legend.
She knew better.
A few minutes later she returned downstairs. Nick looked slightly more collected now, and even more determined. She heard him ask Rachel and Frank to watch the Sanctuary as she entered the room. She hoped Loke wouldn't come knocking, there was always the risk she could have misjudged him and he came to Paris to deal with Erik instead of trying to lure him to Norway.
By themselves, Rachel and David wouldn't stand a chance against someone like Loke. But.. No, she could not be mistaken. Loke was waiting in Norway, waiting like the spider for the flies to enter the web.
“I will book a flight to Norway,” she declared as she walked up to the other three. “But first, I think you should know just what we are going against, Nick. Nothing is as dangerous as underestimating your foe. You probably have an idea what awaits us, but I want you to know for sure.” He gave her a small nod, and she plunged on.
“He will be waiting for us. We will be walking into a trap, just as Amanda and Erik will be.”
Closing her eyes for a brief second, an image of Loke flashed through her mind as she had last seen him. Hateful, cold and calculating. Nothing like the man she had once loved. But that had been a long, long time ago. And she had closed her eyes for the dark sides of him because she wanted him to be good. For a while he had been.
Until the world had burned.
Part Two
